Dear Santa: Cynthia Rowley's Holiday Give and Get List

By Heather Summerville
December 15, 2010

Our Series on What Today's Top Stylemakers Plan to Give—and Hope to Get!—for the Holidays

Christmas or not, Cynthia Rowley is known for designing the sort of clothes that always feel festive. “If you're dressed for a good time, you'll have one,” she insists. Which gets straight to the point of why daywear and party-wear are essentially the same thing in her eponymous designer collection. There are feather skirts meant to be worn with tee shirts, and tee shirts splashed with hundreds of glittering sequins. The normal distinctions do not—nor have they ever—applied in Cynthia Rowley's world, where sparkles rule and vintage-inspired details can be found by the dozen.

As the story famously goes, Cynthia Rowley's debut fashion runway show in the late ‘80s took place in her New York City walk-up apartment. Not a single celebrity or editor was in attendance. Over 20 years later however, her fashion show is notorious for its star-studded front row — Rebecca Romijn, Lauren Bush and Aisha Tyler were all in attendance for Spring 2011—and is highlighted on every major editor's fashion week schedule. And as for her New York City walk-up, Rowley and her designer line—which now includes beauty, handbags, shoes, menswear, children's and most recently a line of retro-inspired shapewear called Slim by Cynthia Rowley—have far outgrown it.

Cynthia Rowley

Slim by Cynthia Rowley

Cynthia Rowley

Shattered Front Sequin Tee, $275 at Cynthia Rowley; Lace & Tassel Dress, $475 at Cynthia Rowley; Tetris Dress, $395 at Cynthia Rowley

Cynthia Rowley's transition from a ready-to-wear collection to a full-fledged lifestyle brand has a lot to do with the fashion designer's ability to find design inspiration everywhere, and these days eBay is playing a big part of that. “My design team and I buy a lot of little inspirational pieces on eBay (if something just happens to be my size it’s a double score!),” Cynthia Rowley said. “But my best buy of all time was a truck! We tricked it out as a mobile store and our ‘Shop on Wheels’ has now traveled across the country meeting, tweeting and showing off our merchandise.”

Cynthia Rowley's Mobile Store

And when it comes to holiday gift ideas, Rowley tends to get just as creative. “Every year I try to surprise the whole Cynthia Rowley team with something fun,” she said. “We've done skiing trips, skating, even a talent show. This year though, it's going to be trapeze!”

(images courtesy of Cynthia Rowley)

What Cynthia Rowley Plans to Give (and Hopes to Get) This Holiday Season

Roll over items for details

Dance Photography Book

Patrick Trapeze Duo Bailey Bros Circus Photo

Vintage Men’s Reindeer Sweater

Dollhouse Furniture Vintage Sewing Machine

Sterling Silver Link ID Bracelet

Vintage Owl Crewel Needlepoint

Outdoor Tennis Table

InStep Sierra Bicycle Trailer Double Stroller

Terence Koh, Such Things I Do

Antique 14K Gold Ring With Opal

Dear Santa: Cynthia Rowley's Holiday Give and Get List

GIVING

1. Trapeze: “I always try to surprise everyone at Cynthia Rowley with something special. This year we’re going to take trapeze lessons.” Perhaps this vintage circus photo from the 1940s will serve to inspire.

2. Vintage Men's Sweater: “Unusual men's vintage sweaters for my husband.” How about this seasonally-appropriate, kitschy reindeer style?

3. Vintage Dollhouse Furniture: “Vintage doll house furniture for my daughters.” This tiny vintage sewing machine seems apropos.

4. Rare Art Books: “Rare fashion or art books that are out of print.”

5. ID Bracelet: “I like DIY, but don't have much time. So anything I can simply customize, like an ID bracelet that I could have engraved, is cool.”

GETTING

6. Vintage Needle Point: “Old needle points — I actually make them into clutches.” This owl has a particular charm.

7. Terence Koh Art: “Every year my husband and I give each other art, and so a lot of our friends like Rob Pruitt, Tom Sachs, Terence Koh and Will Cotton have done special pieces for us.” This signed limited edition by Terence Koh could be a smart choice for the fashion designer, whose newest venture, launched just last week, is Exhibition A, a flash sale site selling limited editions by top contemporary artists.

8. Vintage Jewelry: “Cool vintage accessories, like handbags, shoes or jewelry.”

9. Ping Pong Table: “An outdoor ping-pong table.”

10. Bicycle Trailer: “A bicycle trailer that can carry two kids.”

Tags: